The No.1 Slow Cooker Recipes Site

The Basics of Slow Cooking

• Useful facts about Slow Cookers
• Purchasing & Safety
• General Cooking Tips
• Specific Cooking Tips

Here are some useful facts and tips about slow cookers:

• They are economical, as they generally use less energy to cook the same amount of food as other methods. The heat produced is also much less, which is great in summer.
• You can use a slow cooker to prepare a really healthy tasty meal, as they don't usually require oil, and can be made up mostly of fresh veggies- with lean meat added if desired- with herbs and spices to create a wide variety of flavours.
• Pre-plan for a busy schedule by chopping up the ingredients the night before and storing directly in the stoneware bowl, in the fridge, ready to cook the next day.
• The extreme slow cooking results in tougher (cheaper) meat cuts ending up lovely and tender.
• The low cooking temperature allows you more freedom in when you eat, as it doesn't tend to overcook or burn the meal, so it can stay hot until your family or guests are ready to eat.
• All the delicious juices remain in the dish. Healthy vegetable water isn't lost in draining, as in when cooked in a saucepan.
• Unless instructed to do so by a recipe, don't lift the lid of your slow cooker as they take a while to reach the proper temperature, and this is lost when the lid is removed. Also, a lot of necessary moisture can also be lost.
• You should fill your slow cooker about one third to half full for optimum cooking.
• A lot of root vegetables are slower to cook than meat, so should be placed in the bottom of the slow cooker. Quicker cooking ingredients, such as seafood, frozen veggies, quick cook veggies such as broccoli and dairy, should always be on top, and usually only added for the last half hour or so.
• Try to cut your ingredients in similar size pieces- or allow for size variation depending on required cooking time of each ingredient- so that they will cook in the same timespan.
• Meats are often better browned quickly in a frypan first, especially if you want the browned appearance in your meal.
• Begin your cooking on a high heat, to get the slow cooker up to temperature (which is important especially if meat is being cooked) and then reduce heat for the remainder of the time.
• Never pour cold water straight into a hot slow cooker bowl to clean as it may crack. Add warm water or allow to cool first.

Purchasing and Safety

• When purchasing a slow cooker, look for one with a removable liner. They are much easier to clean. If you have a nonremovable liner, however, all is not lost! Line your slow cooker with a cooking bag and you'll have no cleanup at all. Spray the inside of the liner with cooking spray before you fill it to make cleanup easier.
• 60C(140F) is the temperature the food needs to reach as quickly as possible. If you are at home during the cooking times, test the food temperature after four hours of cooking on LOW - the temp should be at least 60C(140F). If it isn't, there's a problem with your slow cooker and you should get a new one.
• For food safety reasons, it's a good idea to cook on HIGH for the first hour to quickly bring the temperature up to 60C(140F). Then turn the dial to LOW and finish cooking.
• The LOW setting is about 77C(170F), and the HIGH setting is about 93C(200F). Note that both of these temps are well above the minimum safe temperature of 60C(140F).
• Experts recommend you do not put frozen foods in the slow cooker. All foods should be defrosted before cooking so the food temperature can reach 60C(140F) as soon as possible. However, since none of my family members are in a high-risk group, I often cook frozen foods in the slow cooker. The informed choice is up to you.
• One hour on HIGH is equal to two hours on LOW.
• Remove cooked food from the slow cooker or liner before you refrigerate the cooked food. Because the liner is made of such thick material, the food won't cool down quickly enough to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria.

Slow Cooker General Cooking Tips

• Only fill the slow cooker one half to two thirds full. The foods will not cook properly if the appliance is filled to the brim. If the food and liquid level is lower, the foods will cook too quickly.
• Foods cooked on the bottom of the slow cooker cook faster and will be moister because they are immersed in the simmering liquid.
• Remove skin from poultry, and trim excess fat from meats. Fats will melt with long cooking times, and will add an unpleasant texture to the finished dish. Fatty foods will also cook too quickly.
• You can thicken the juices and concentrate flavours by removing the lid and cooking on HIGH for the last half hour of cooking time.
• Most meats require 8 hours of cooking on LOW. Use cheaper cuts of meat - not only do you save money, but these meats work better in the slow cooker. Cheaper cuts of meat have less fat, which makes them more suited to slow cooker cooking. Moist, long cooking times result in very tender meats.
• Follow the layering instructions carefully. Vegetables do not cook as quickly as meat, so they should be placed in the bottom of the appliance.
• Don't lift the lid to stir, especially if you are cooking on the low setting. Each time you lift the lid, enough heat will escape that the cooking time should be extended by 20 minutes to half an hour. To check progress without lifting the lid, spin the cover until the condensation falls off. Then it's easy to see inside.

Specific Cooking Tips

• For best results, ground meats must be cooked in a skillet before cooking in the slow cooker.
• Seafood should be added during the last hour of cooking time, or it will overcook and have a rubbery texture.
• Large pieces of meat can be browned before cooking in the slow cooker, but this step isn't necessary. Browning adds colour and helps in flavour development.
• Cayenne pepper and tabasco sauce tend to become bitter if cooked for long periods of time. Use small amounts and add toward the end of the cooking time.
• Add tender vegetables like tomatoes, mushrooms and courgette during the last 45 minutes of cooking time so they don't overcook.
• Dairy products should be added during the last 30 minutes of cooking time, unless the recipes states otherwise.
• Liquids do not boil away in the slow cooker, so if you are making a recipe that wasn't specifically developed for the slow cooker, reduce the liquid by ⅓ to ½ unless you are cooking rice or making soup.
• Stir in spices for the last hour of cooking. They will lose flavour if cooked with the rest of the ingredients for the long cooking period.

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